More employers and workers are choosing direct transfers. Here is what is driving that shift.
Something has quietly changed in how Singapore households find domestic workers. Transfer hirings — where a worker already in Singapore moves from one employer to another — have grown steadily over the past few years. And the reasons behind that shift say a lot about what both workers and employers actually want.
What is a transfer hire
A transfer worker is an MDW who is already employed in Singapore and is looking for a new placement, often because her current contract is ending, her employer is relocating, or the match simply was not right. She does not need to fly in from overseas. She has local experience. She knows how Singapore households work.
Why employers are paying attention
The practical case is strong. Transfer hires typically have shorter waiting times — sometimes as little as one to two weeks. Employers can meet the worker in person before committing. There is no two-week quarantine lag, no uncertainty about what someone is like in a real home environment. What you see is largely what you get.
There is also the question of cost. Hiring through a traditional agency for an overseas worker can involve placement fees, loan repayment periods, and months before a household finds its rhythm. A transfer hire, done directly, can reduce those friction points significantly.
Why workers prefer it too
For MDWs, a transfer is often a chance to reset on their own terms. A worker who has already spent two or three years in Singapore has built real skills, real knowledge of local norms, and a clearer sense of what kind of household suits her. She is not starting from zero. She is negotiating from experience.
Direct transfers also mean workers have more say in the process. They can ask questions. They can evaluate the employer just as much as the employer evaluates them. That two-way dynamic produces better matches — and better matches mean longer, more stable placements for everyone.
The catch with agency-mediated transfers
Not all transfer hires are equal. When agencies control the process, fees can still be significant and information can be filtered. Workers sometimes receive limited details about a prospective employer before committing. Employers may not get the full picture either. Transparency tends to suffer when there is a commercial middleman with incentives of their own.
This is the gap that direct platforms are designed to close. Anisya connects employers and transfer workers directly — no agency markup, no filtered profiles, no hidden steps. Both sides get full information and make decisions together. That is not a radical idea. It is just a fairer way to hire.